Not the bunny I was expecting. Funny.
Posted on 11/22/2004 8:39:43 AM PST by MWS
Alright, fellow VKers, I have a small bone to pick with some of you. Not necessarily you, the one reading this post (I mean, I'd never criticize you personally... you know that...), but rather some of the other Kitties reading this post.
I think that a few of us are getting a little overzealous in the pursuit of trolls. It's good to be a little zealous, of course. After all, it strikes fear in the hearts of those who would infiltrate us and wreak havoc on all the other poor, unsuspecting FReepers we have vowed to defend. Unfortunately, some among us (again, not you personally... you'd never be overzealous...you and I both know this!) have had the tendency to lob the label of "troll" at anyone who posts an article or comment that seems a bit outlandish. I especially have a problem with this when it is done to established FReepers who have been around for a while.
My concern isn't for the person getting targetted, of course. This forum is made up of big boys and girls who can tolerate a little name calling. My concern, rather, is for the reputation of the forum itself, not to mention for the reputations of those who are making the charges. After all, it doesn't reflect well on someone who is calling for the zotting of a member who has been with FR since 1998!
The power of the Zot is a mighty weapon. It strikes sheer horror into the hearts of trolls everywhere (well... it gives us a few laughs at the expense of some hapless sap...but still). It should be used with fear and trepidation. With that in mind, we ought to keep several guidelines in mind as we go out to hunt those who wish to besmirch our glorious forum:
1.Check the dates at which people joined. People who signed up in '98 or '99 most likely aren't trolls. You might want to hesitate on attempting to zot someone who signed up in 2000 as well. Trolls are not patient beings. They don't tend to lurk for that long. I suppose it is possible they could be a troll, but not it's not very likely.
2.Check posting histories, please. Trolls don't tend to post passionate defenses of conservativism. In fact, this is actually a way of catching trolls as well. Trolls are over the top in their conservatism - because they do not understand conservatism itself, only a caricature. Read what the person has said in the past before lobbing out charges of trollery.
3.Not every newbie posting an article is a troll. Granted, it's quite possible that they are, but it's also possible that they are simply clueless as to the mistake they're making. (As a sidenote, I really do wish that there were a disclaimer warning newbies not to post articles... it really would save a lot of effort...)
4.Don't forget to sacrifice the troll heads to the Mods. I can't emphasize this enough. They get angry when they don't get their sacrifices.
I'm sure others can think of some other guidelines.
Happy Zotting!
http://www.minibite.com/oldies/humble.htm
I found this for an entirely different purpose..but it could be handy for some posters!..LOL
Just finished perusing the troll magnet thread. Never seen so many in a row of
Comment #66 Removed by Moderator
You don't fit either protected category. Can we zot you?
LOL!
Love the graphic that is on that page.
Me,too!
Not the bunny I was expecting. Funny.
That machine gun post removal was ALOR of foul language by one single troll.
He obviously had a rather limited vocab, considering it was mostly expletives and crudity.
It was an interesting thread to read the removed posts on, in that "Oh, look at the troll! He's learned to boot a computer and sign on!" kind of way.
Too bad the original intent of the thread got hijacked like that.
I find a number of types of trolls:
1) Moby's Marching Morons who have never been to FR before and think that they can vent frustration or shape FReeper opinion by signing up (first time) and posting an article but no followups. (Post and run). Some of these accounts even last a couple of weeks.
2) DU trolls who return to FR again and again (often the same account getting nuked 2 or 3 times in a day).
3) Google searchers gone wrong. These trolls dredge up a 2+ year old thread somehow (I would suspect a Google search) and then start posting to the comments there in a very outraged tone. These accounts generally last a day.
4) Stealth trolls (silent but stupid). They build up a list of names to vent at (DU supposedly had a "most hated FReepers" thread), possibly they use PING lists, and then they FReepmail members profanity laced death threats and insults. Since there is no posting history, the mods won't stumble across these trolls. Sometimes the trolls will manage to send out 7 different such messages to 10s or 100s of FReepers before being caught (a recipient has to notify the mod).
There has been heavy troll activity (posting as well as registration) when the Rats have been particularly upset. 1998 signups tie in with the Clinton Impeachment. Such accounts have not all been nuked yet. Perhaps LONG dormant (5 year+) accounts should have to be reverified to be able to post again (a history of such accounts reactivating would point to a cell of sleeper accounts).
The 2000 primaries brought liberal "McCainiacs" who didn't want Bush on the ballot against their own true favored candidate Al Gore Jr. (they wanted Gore but would settle for the lesser of "2 evils" if Republicans won).
The 2000 recount got a lot of signups (the left did not like the FReepers chanting "Get out of Dick Cheney's house!").
There are even some 9-11 attack DUpers who are trolling with those accounts now. I saw a 9-16-2001 signup get rightly nuked last month.
I would advise posters to err on the side of caution before shouting "troll begone" to established posters but legacy accounts do exist (and there are some known liberals who have been permitted to remain for years). However, if something seems to be crossing the line, you CAN always send an abuse memo to the Admin Moderator.
That one is cute too.
/humor (good post MWS)
Premature e-ZOT!-u-lation is not easy to talk about. Thank you for making this thread possible. :o)
Better to be too vigilant than not enough, I say!!
Well I was driving down I-95 the other night,
when somebody nearly cut me right off the road.
I decided it wasn't going to do any good to get mad,
so I wrote a song about him instead. It goes like this...
Were you bo-rn an a$$hole, or did you work at it your whole life?
Either way it worked out fine, 'cause you're an a$$-hole tonight.
Yes you're an A-$$HOLE, and don't you try to blame it on me,
you deserve all the credit, you're an a$$hole tonight.
You were an a$$ho-le yesterday, you're an a$$-hole tonight,
and I've got a feeling, you'll be an a$$hole the rest of your life.
And I was talking to your mother, just the other night,
I told her I thought you were an a$$hole, she said "yes, I think you're right".
And a-ll your friends are a$$holes, 'cause you've known them your whole life,
and somebo-dy told me, you've got an a$$hole for a wife.
Were you bo-rn an a$$hole, or did you work at it your whole life?
Either way it worked out fine, 'cause you're an a$$-hole tonight.
It's called the I-95 song.
http://www.robrob8.com/song_parody/asshole_tonight.htm
*chuckle*
can you please add mini-meeps to your ping list. He is my son. He just got his screen name last week. Thanks
Oh, I certainly don't. And anyone who wants to is certainly invited to try.
But, just remember... I am a VK Spymaster and those who cross me have a frightening tendency to disappear... I hear that their fates are quite painful, moreso than a normal zotting... ;)
Seriously, though, thank you all for understanding (as I knew you would!). We, in our fervent desire to please the Almighty Mods who see all and can do all, certainly do not wish to anger them with our own actions.
Did that "little kid" troll and his "brother" ever get fried?
The Mods certainly ticked me off a little with that one. Those were SO obvious.
This is true.
I caught a sleeper troll about a month ago. Signed up earlier this year. The key with those, though, is the fact that their histories are blank up to a certain point, and then all of a sudden they're busy posting again.
Unless they were FReeping under a different name for a while (which I made the mistake of doing... never give up seniority for the sake of wanting a new name!), they're usually troublemakers thinking that they're somehow beating the system.
We really ought to establish a handbook of how to spot trolls. That's just as important as threads talking about who NOT to zot. :)
Dunno.
Lemme check.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.